Category Archives: Income Creation

Profit From Problems

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One of my favourite TV shows is The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch, an entrepreneurial programme broadcast on CNBC. In the light of the severe financial crisis bedeviling American businesses, Deutsch recently explained that he had to temporarily change the format of his show from showcasing entrepreneurship to discussing the economy.

There definitely are tremendous challenges now facing large and small enterprises. However, I wonder if Deutsch was completely correct in his declaration that the entrepreneurial spirit was forced to become dormant due to consumers’ lack of confidence and their consequent refusal to spend as customary.

It has been said that big opportunities are born in times when there are great challenges. The test of a true entrepreneur comes when he or she can ignore the prevailing darkness of despair, and focus on the light of possibility.

This is easier said than done, as it takes tremendous strength of mind to keep a positive outlook in the face of overwhelming negativity. Continue reading Profit From Problems →

Steps to surviving a tough economy

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Last week we explored some of the financial challenges being faced by many consumers in this tough economy. It seems that everyone, regardless of financial status, is reeling from the effects of the spiraling cost of living and the shrinking value of money.

There are really only two things to do when there isn’t enough money to meet your needs – cut back on spending or earn more money. Let’s take a look at some practical things you can do right now to ease the pressure of these challenging financial times:

Reduce non-essential spending

With this global financial crisis, it’s definitely not the right time to get involved in extravagant spending sprees. It’s smart to be prudent with your money at this time, so don’t spend too much money on non-essential expenses such as entertainment or clothing.

Become more price-conscious

In the past, shoppers could just pick up their favourite brand name items without concern for price; now you must scrutinize prices to ensure you’re getting the best deals. Recently, I noticed that my regular brand of corned beef cost nearly J$70 more than a perfectly good alternative. What’s worse, the cheaper brand found in this supermarket was over J$20 less at another location! Continue reading Steps to surviving a tough economy →

Beware of Internet Money Scams

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The Internet is a wonderful resource that can provide a wealth of information and bring tremendous opportunity to make money. It allows people to have an audience of millions and provides entrepreneurs with potential customers at a relatively small cost.

However, sometimes it’s difficult to determine if the information on the Internet is genuine or accurate. The Internet can also be used by scam artists to make themselves wealthy by taking advantage of the gullible.

Here are some of the common ways that people lose money by trying to make money on the Internet: Continue reading Beware of Internet Money Scams →

Tips on Affiliate Marketing

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Last week we introduced the concept of affiliate marketing as a viable option of making money in the age of technology. This internet-driven venture allows website owners to place advertising materials from affiliated online merchants onto their site.

When the affiliate website’s visitors are convinced to visit the merchant’s online store and make a purchase, then the affiliate is paid a commission. Affiliate marketing is simply word-of-mouth marketing gone high-tech.

Some of the largest corporations in the world use affiliate marketing to increase sales. These include Amazon.com, Walmart, Barnes & Noble, Nike, Office Depot, Microsoft, Best Buy, Sony, Dell, and Coca Cola, just to name a few.

Affiliate marketing has also contributed to the development of many small companies by putting them in touch with millions of potential customers that they would otherwise not have been able to reach. Continue reading Tips on Affiliate Marketing →

Making Money with Affiliate Marketing

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“I pooled some money together for a deposit in one of the alternative investment schemes, as I really needed a source of extra money. It seems almost impossible for me to earn what I need to survive from my regular job.

“Now that I’ve stopped receiving monthly payments from the investment scheme, I’m looking for some other options to earn part-time income. Any suggestions?”

With rising prices and stagnant paycheques, anyone trying to get ahead financially has to look for viable options to earn extra income. The phenomenal growth of the ‘alternative investment’ financial market in Jamaica is partly due to people’s natural desire to make lots of money without too much effort.

However, many investors participated out of desperation because their nine-to-five jobs were just not providing enough to pay bills and save for future financial goals. Continue reading Making Money with Affiliate Marketing →

Making Money Out of Nothing on the Internet

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Last week we looked at the Internet as a remarkable resource for successfully marketing products and services. With millions of possible customers, the income-generating potential of having an online presence is priceless. If you learn how to use simple but effective mediums such as websites, blogs, and audio and video podcasts, it’s feasible to earn extra money.

But what if you don’t already have a product or service to offer? Is it still possible to generate money on the Internet starting out with nothing?

The surprising answer is Yes! The wonderful thing about the Internet is that it brings together people with diverse interests and needs in one immense marketplace. If you learn how to figure out what people are interested in and what they would like to buy, then you can supply it for a profit. There are free websites that can give an insight on what people are searching for or talking about online. Continue reading Making Money Out of Nothing on the Internet →

Making Money on the Internet

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One of the most frequent questions I receive as a financial advisor is, “How can I earn more money when I don’t have the time to take on a second job?” Then there are others with lots of time on their hands, like the college graduate who can’t get a job, or the worker who’s been laid off, who will ask how they can find viable ways to generate income.

There is a remarkable money-making opportunity that’s open to practically everyone – young or old, university-educated or high-school dropout – which doesn’t require huge amounts of start-up capital or specialized knowledge to succeed. What is needed to take advantage of this new age money-maker is a little creativity and the determination to learn the tricks of the trade.

This opportunity is called Internet marketing.

Last week I attended Peak Potentials’ The World’s Greatest Marketing Seminar, where participants were exposed to cutting-edge techniques of marketing. Speaker after speaker showed how making money on the Internet was more accessible than ever before to anyone, anywhere, in the world that wanted to take advantage of it. We heard tales of people who were earning thousands of dollars (United States currency of course!) monthly, weekly and even daily by marketing products and services online.

To make your mark on the Internet you have to take advantage of most or all of the various mediums of presenting your product or service to the world. Here are a few of the possible things you can do:

1.   Make a simple and useful website

If you have a product or service for sale, then you need to have a presence online. Don’t limit yourself to what you may think the Jamaican market can handle- there’s millions of people out there in cyberspace who may want what you have to offer. You don’t have to spend a lot of money making it high-tech or fancy, just present the bare essentials of what you do and how it can solve someone’s problems. The next step is to utilize some of the many techniques of driving interested consumers to your webpage.

Need ideas to create more money? CLICK HERE!

2.   Express yourself by starting a blog

According to www.answers.com, a blog is short for web log, an online, regularly updated journal or newsletter that is readily accessible to the general public by virtue of being posted on a website. Blogs usually report on topics of interest to the author, but readers can also post their comments. A blog can help you to promote your product or service by containing a link to your website, and by allowing you to establish yourself as an expert in your field. You can start a blog in minutes free of charge by going to a blog publishing site like WordPress or Blogger.

3.   Let your voice be heard with podcasting

Many people react with more emotion to the sound of a voice than just to words on a paper. To get your message to stand out from the crowd, you can create a recording called a podcast that people can listen to on your site or play back on a portable media player. The term was derived from combining broadcast and iPod (the Apple brand of the media player). Podcasts allow to you to continually reach your audience whenever you update your content.

4.   Put your best face forward with online video

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then video broadcasting is the whole book. Think of how successful you could be if you could speak directly to lots of people about the benefits of your product or service. Video podcasting can be done on your site, or you can post something related to your offering on a website such as YouTube which is viewed by millions. For example if you sold natural hair care products could post a video demonstrating hair care tips.

Now many of you might be thinking that online marketing is only for computer geeks and ‘techies’ who are very familiar with the workings of the Internet. This is definitely not the case, because how-to information is available to anyone who searches for it online. There is also a level playing field as you can have access to millions of people who may be interested in what you have to say, or to sell.

The following is an example of an unlikely Internet marketing success story: A 90-year-old great-grandmother in Australia was bored with retirement and wanted a way to share her love of quilting with the rest of the world. She received some basic Internet training and learned how to publish an E-book on quilting. She now earns over US$1,000 monthly selling her E-books online and has thousands of devoted subscribers to her site.

If a ninety-year old retiree can make money on the Internet, don’t you think you could too? Next week I’ll look at what you can offer on the Internet if you don’t have a business or product to sell.

Copyright © 2007 Cherryl Hanson Simpson. No reproduction without written consent.

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Originally published in The Daily Observer, October 25, 2007

Cherryl is a financial columnist, consultant and coach. See more of her work at www.financiallyfreenetwork.com and www.financiallysmartonline.com. Contact Cherryl

Create Your Own Income

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“I left college a year ago, and I still can’t find a job suitable for my qualifications. I’m really getting frustrated now, as I desperately need to reduce my student loan. I’m trying to think of other ways to make money, but it seems so hard to find a profitable business opportunity. Any ideas on how I can create my own income?”

When we think of earning an income, we generally consider finding employment with an established company, where we hope to get a good salary and great benefits. In fact, from an early age, most of our parents had drilled into our heads, “work hard at school and get good grades, so that you can get a nice job.”

For others, income generating takes a different path. Some, who are blessed with an entrepreneurial spirit, will immediately set out to create their own income, in turn providing jobs for many others. Then there are some people, like you, who are forced out of necessity to find other ways to earn money when the traditional job is not forthcoming.

Whatever the road you may travel to earning your own income, the rules are basically the same. There are three main ways to successfully create sustainable income: Continue reading Create Your Own Income →

Creating Passive Income

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“I work at a job which will not provide a pension. I’m trying really hard now to earn more so that I’ll have enough money saved up when I retire. However, the problem is that my time is limited as I go to college part-time and I’m a single parent of a nine year-old boy. Any ideas how to increase my income without spending a lot of time doing it?”

In our never-ending search to make more money, we all face an unchanging limitation- there are only twenty-four hours in one day. There is just so much work that we can physically do to generate income and no more, given the constraints of time.

Is it somehow possible to create income that is not restricted by our capacity to work? Yes it is! The answer can be found in passive income. Continue reading Creating Passive Income →

Boost Your Income

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“I’ve done my budget and I as much as I try, I can’t cut back on any expenses. I have one child that is not being supported by his father and I find it really hard to make ends meet on my salary. I would love to be able to earn more money, but I don’t know how to start. Any advice?”

Last week we looked at ways to find more money to save by creatively reducing expenses. However, if you aren’t making enough money even for your basic needs, then the only option is to increase your income.

Once again, the first step is to assess your income and expenditure to find out how much your monthly deficit is. Write down all your monthly expenses, including a savings amount, on your budget planner and subtract the total from your earnings.

If you’re not making ends meet, then your budget should show a shortfall. This figure is the targeted amount which you need to increase your income each month. Continue reading Boost Your Income →